


Ten Tousand Years

by hypermoyashi



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, RG Veda (Manga), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Typical Violence, Characters and pairings to be added as they appear, Crossover, Depression, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of Suicide, No Proofreading We Die Like Men, Non-Binary Main Character, Not Beta Read, written to help the author recover from the ending of RG Veda
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-24
Updated: 2018-06-26
Packaged: 2018-10-08 22:48:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10397901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hypermoyashi/pseuds/hypermoyashi
Summary: For three hundred years, Ashura had slept. Awakened and then taken on a journey, their story had ended in a blaze of fire and blood and death, all rained down by Ashura’s own hands, and they once again fell into a deep slumber. Yasha, the king of a people long dead, stayed by their side, until the day when they would wake and return to the world. No matter how many thousands of years it might take, no matter if their names were forgotten, no matter if their race of gods slowly perished and their world was slowly absorbed into the world of man.Steve and his team were assigned a mission that proved to be a lot more troublesome and involved than initially thought: to remove the pesky man that seems to be doggedly guarding Shield’s latest potential scientific discovery.Self indulgent crossover between RG Veda and the Avengers, because these children deserve to be happy. Set after the events of RG Veda and vaguely follows the MCU Avengers universe. No RG Veda knowledge is really needed to read this, but some MCU knowledge might be.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Since exactly 5 people have read RG Veda and fanfiction for it, I’m writing this with the assumption that the reader knows nothing of the universe. I am, however, assuming that the reader is familiar with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, at least. If anything confuses you, please let me know and I will try to correct it or provide further explanation.
> 
> As for the Marvel universe, I will be setting it in the Cinematic Universe, minus Civil War and the fall of Shield (but including Bucky, for no other reason than I like him). So basically, the team is still together, they live at Avengers' tower, mostly, Thor and Bruce are still off doing Thor and Bruce things, and they have a bunch of cool new members.
> 
> It should be noted that this story will contain heavy spoilers for RG Veda, the first professional publication of CLAMP, and I recommend reading it if you haven’t and want to effectively be run over by a truck of emotions. It’s a good time to buy it, as Dark Horse is releasing three very nice compilation volumes in English, if you have access to them in your country. For context, RG Veda follows the story of the heavens and the turmoil that followed the usurpation of the God King by one of his knights, Taishakuten. This rebel beheaded Ashura-ou, the strongest of the old King’s defenders, and took the title of God King for himself. He wiped out the Ashura clan, save for Ashura-ou’s child, who was sealed in sleep for three hundred years before King Yasha of the warrior clan that served God King Taishakuten woke them up and took them on a journey to gather the six stars of legend, their fated companions, and defeat the God King. Of course, it all goes to hell when the seals placed on Ashura are fully broken, and it’s revealed that the Ashura clan are gods of war and destruction, who care nothing for the damage they cause or the people they kill and live only for bloodshed. The six stars, Ashura’s dear friends, were killed either by the “True Ashura,” the unsealed, murderous version of Ashura, or by God King Taishakuten. Ashura, however, was unable to bring themself to kill Yasha, the last of the six stars, and so they instead attempted to end their own life. This resulted in them once again falling asleep, and Yasha elected to stay by their side until they woke up. Then, this self indulgent fanfiction takes place to help me not cry on the floor for hours, because everything is happier in the Avengers’ universe.
> 
> In narration, I will use they/them pronouns for Ashura, as they possess no physical sex and don’t seem to identify either way, but for the most part, the characters themselves will refer to Ashura as male in dialog. The reason for this being that Ashura doesn’t seem to particularly care what they are referred to as, and I don’t see them actively trying to get Yasha and the others to refer to them with neutral pronouns. In Japanese, the original language of RG Veda, it’s easy to refer to someone in gender neutral ways when speaking about them, but it unfortunately comes much less naturally for English. Since the characters are speaking English in this fanfiction, it’s safe to say that they would probably assume one pronoun or the the other for Ashura, and the male pronouns are more widely used for them in the manga and on the internet. Furthermore, the authors seem to treat Ashura as both a man and a woman, so from this and my personal understanding of the character I don’t believe there are necessarily incorrect pronouns for them. 
> 
> Although Ashura is fully grown in this story, as it takes place after the events of RG Veda, certain characters, namely Kujaku, will refer to Ashura as a child as a term of endearment. Ashura spent much of their time in RG Veda running around in the form of a child, only magically aging after certain events, so the characters that knew them then will likely still think of them as young. 
> 
> I apologize for anything that seems OOC for the characters. For the MCU characters, it’s been awhile since I’ve really been in the fandom and done heavy reading for it, so my knowledge and interpretations might be a bit rusty. If there are any glaring mistakes, feel free to point them out to me.
> 
> This story is vaguely inspired by liketolaugh’s Cosmic Composite story, which is a very good Avengers and D.Gray-man crossover. If you like D.Gray-man and haven’t read it, I recommend it!
> 
> Warnings for attempted suicide, light swearing, mentions of a lot of murder and violence, questionable and vaguely defined relationship between Yasha and Ashura, mentions of past suicides, and lots of sadness and depression. If I missed anything, please let me know so I can more appropriately label this story.

For three hundred years, Ashura had slept. For a few short years, they had traveled with Yasha, Ryuu, Souma, and Kujaku. Then, it had ended in a blaze of fire and blood and death, all rained down by Ashura’s own hands, and unable to kill the person more important to them than anything, they once again fell into a deep slumber. Yasha, the king of a people long dead, stayed by their side, until the day when they would wake and return to the world. No matter how many thousands of years it might take, no matter if their names were forgotten, and no matter if their race of gods slowly perished and their world was slowly absorbed into the world of man.

-/-/-

Avengers Tower was quiet these days. Tony Stark, of course, was in his workshop, and most likely had been for the past ten hours or so, by Steve’s guess. He made a mental note to go drag the other man out for dinner later. Peter Parker, only being an interim member as Spider-man and a teenager to boot, was at school and would likely only drop in during emergencies (so not anytime soon, Steve hoped). Scott Lang was on extended leave to spend time with his daughter, while Wanda, Vision, Buckey, and Rhodey were all on an indefinite mission for Shield in Wakanda. Clint and Natasha were… probably around, probably in the air ducts, if Steve had learned anything from living with the two of them. Finally, Sam Wilson and he were in the gym, which was Steve’s go-to passtime and the other man more than happy to join him.

“Earth to Steve!”

Steve blinked and focused on his friend again. “I’m sorry, what?”

Sam shook his head, setting down the barbell he’d been lifting with. Steve glanced at his own weights, but didn’t set them aside even as he listened to his friend’s words. “I was asking about Shield. It’s strange for us to have so much down time.”

“I think,” Steve started, frowning, “That they’ve been busy tracking down artifacts of power. They’d like to get to things like the Tesseract before they get a chance to cause to trouble, so they’ve had agents searching for energy signatures.”

“With some of the tech that Tony came up with, right?” Sam remembered.

Steve nodded. “Yeah, I think so. Since they’ve been busy with that, and with Hydra currently laying low, we don’t have much to do.”

Sam sighed, rubbing at his arms and stretching. “Hey, I’m not complaining. The less we have to do, the more peaceful the world is. Also, I’m beat and starving, so I think that’s it for me.”

Steve nodded and finally set his weights on their proper wrack. “I’ll join you after I shower.”

“Oh, yeah,” Sam laughed, “Good idea. I don’t think the rest of the guys would appreciate gym smells in the kitchen.”

-/-/-

Excluding the two waiting within the earth, it was just Kujaku and Tenou left of the god race. The later had received a final enchanted gift from his father, the former God King Kaishankuten, that would allow him to live as long as he desired past the normal life span of a god. (Kujaku had survived because he was just odd and long-lived by nature.)

Tenou often would say, “My brother said I would serve as a witness for events to come, so I would like to watch over him and Lord Yasha. Besides, Ashura and I never got the chance to speak properly, so I will wait for him to wake with the both of you.”

The former prince of the heavens was a salaryman of all things, and was currently earning his keep as a lawyer, to try and help people. He had to, of course, change identities and professions every few decades, as humans would grow suspicious of a person who never aged, but he did well for himself. He even managed to visit Yasha and Ashura every century or so, despite the difficulties the journey presented for him. Tenou possessed few of his former powers besides longevity, them having waned away with time.

Kujaku, on the other hand, had no desire to truly conform to human society as Tenou had and did his best to maintain his abilities. He was content to remain disjointed from society, just as Ashura and Yasha were, and simply watch over them as time passed him by. Of course, in the event that Ashura did miraculously wake, he wanted to be prepared for the child’s return. It wouldn’t do for them to wake, only for both Yasha and Kujaku to be completely ignorant of the current era. So yes, Kujaku had managed to stay mostly up to date with human culture, as fast as it moved in present times, although technology was a rather new and difficult thing for him.

Kujaku ended his flight on a rocky slope framed with trees, his wings curling back and disappearing from sight. He frowned at the humans buzzing around the entrance to the cave. How odd. In all his time watching over this place, humans had never bothered themselves with it. From what Kujaku could tell, they were some kind of scientists with a few odd soldiers scattered around, and they had various equipment set up at the edge of the cave. It appeared that they had yet to actually start attempting to explore it.

Deciding to disregard them, as it was unlikely they’d ever find Ashura’s resting place in the maze of caves, Kujaku slipped into the magical recesses of the world and passed by the humans unseen. He went deeper, until he was in the forgotten depths of the earth, and metallic roots of an enormous tree lined the passages and cracked the rock.

The thing enveloping Ashura, when it first appeared, looked more like giant heart than a tree, in the place of the former palace of the God King. As time passed, however, and the landscape changed, it sunk into the earth and slowly shifted into the shape it took now. What, exactly, it was, not even Kujaki knew, but it was some kind of manifestation of Ashura’s connection with the Shura Palace, most likely. Or, perhaps, it was just the palace itself, protecting its master while they slept.

Kujaku entered Ashura’s resting place, his eyes immediately drifting to the serene face of the little one, black hair freely flowing around their form. The metallic tree sprouted from their arms and body, pinning them in place for what should be the rest of time. Despite the confines, Ashura was as beautiful as ever, even more so now that their face was free of the twisted sneers that warped their features when their true nature had reared its ugly head and was just as free of the many tears that Ashura had shed during their time of freedom.

“Kujaku?”

Said man shifted his focus to the speaker, Lord Yasha himself. The former king had seated himself, like normal, at the base of the tree, as close to Ashura as he could be without having drill a platform into the not-tree. His clothes were worn, his face tired and lonely, and his voice cracked with disuse.

Kujaku smiled and held up a pack. “I brought you food, clothes, and some reading material, not that you actually read anything I bring. It wouldn’t do for sleeping beauty over there to wake up, only to find you starved, naked, and mad, am I right?”

Yasha, true to form, barely responded to Kujaku’s proddling. Even during the adventures of old, the guardian king was quiet and unreadable. “There are humans gathering outside,” Yasha observed.

The other man nodded, setting the pack against one of the roots sprawling up the wall. “Yes, I noticed. Have they been there long?”

“No, they haven’t,” Yasha answered. “A day or so at the most.”

Kujaku grinned. “Well, good. I doubt we have anything to worry about from them. They’re all weak enough that they shouldn’t be any trouble for the strongest warrior in Tenkai, and besides, the chances they’ll find this place are slim. Right, Yasha?”

The former king studied Kujaku for a moment before nodding in agreement. “You’re probably right.”

They continued to exchange pleasantries for a bit, which was closer to Kujaku rambling and Yasha listening than an actual conversation, before Kujaku left. He checked on the humans once again, using magic to remain unseen, and frowned at their equipment. It wasn’t anything he recognized, but then again, he was never truly up to date with all the advances in human technology. Sure, he could work a cell phone or a computer if he needed to, but anything more than that was beyond him.

Once again dismissing his worries, Kujaku took to the sky.

-/-/-

With half the team gone, dinner was just Steve, Tony, Clint, Natasha, and Sam. It was Sam’s turn to cook, so dinner was actually very good, with him trying out a new recipe for Salmon. They ate with the sound of friendly chatter floating around, the atmosphere relaxed and easy without the tension of an impending mission or some villainous plot to worry about. For the time being, they weren’t superheroes, they were just friends.

Of course, it was too much to ask of the universe to allow that to last.

When they finished eating and were debating what title to watch for movie night (Tony had picked last time, but before that they had lost count and Clint was insisting it was his turn), Nick Fury elected to stroll into the tower.

“Really, just walk right in?” Tony complained upon noticing the leader of Shield. “FRIDAY, you’re supposed to warn us of uninvited guests.”

“Sorry, boss,” the AI replied, “Nick Fury has clearance to enter, so I figured you wouldn’t mind.”

“Well, I do mind, so just warn us next time,” Tony grumbled.

Meanwhile, Steve stood to greet the man. “Fury, good to see you. I assume this isn’t a social call?”

Clint, Natasha, and Sam had all stood, as well, leaving Tony the only one seated. The inventor showed no signs of leaving his seat, content to lounge at the dinner table. Steve might have solded him, but by now, he was used to and expected this kind of nonchalant behavior of Tony. The man was, after all, not really a soldier and shouldn’t be made to act like one.

“Unfortunately not,” Fury replied. “We have a problem.”

“You mean Shield has a problem,” Tony commented, ever quick to separate their team from Fury’s organization. “Please tell me Reindeer Games isn’t back or anything.”

“Does it have anything to do with the searches you have your agents doing?” Sam asked. Steve guessed he was remembering their conversation from earlier.

Fury raised an eyebrow at Tony and looked about ready to snap at the man until Sam spoke up. “Yes. Our research team tracked an odd energy signature to South America, and they sent out a team to explore it a few days ago.”

“Let me guess, they messed with something they shouldn’t have and got cursed or something?” Tony asked unseriously.

“If you would let me finish,” Fury said sternly, then continued, “They found what they found the source by tracking the signature into a cave system, but they ran into trouble. Whatever’s down there has some kind of guard that won’t let anyone come close to it.”

“With all due respect, Sir,” Steve started, “If whatever is down there is guarded, is there any need for us to interfere with it? Our goal is to make sure powerful artifacts like the Tesseract don’t fall into the wrong hands, not to collect them. If no one can get to it, then shouldn’t we leave it alone?”

Tony spoke before Fury got a chance to answer. “Wow, capsicle said something kind of intelligent. Except, eyepatch here is going to argue that it isn’t secure enough, whatever it is, and we need to know what it is and if we need to secure it. Because you can’t trust anyone but yourself to handle shit, right?”

Fury sighed a rubbed his temple with one figure. “However condescending you’re trying to be, Shield’s job is to protect the Earth. When we’re constantly dealing with aliens and magic and other things we can’t possible understand, we can’t leave anything to chance. Try to settle things with that guardian peacefully, if you want, or not, but you will go and you will make it possible for Shield agents to examine that energy signature. You’ll report tomorrow.”

Nick Fury wasn’t one to take ‘no’ for an answer, so he turned and walked out the door before any of them had a chance to answer.

Steve sighed. “Alright, Clint, Natasha--you two stay here and hold down the fort. Sam, Tony--I hope you two don’t mind spending the night on the Quinjet tonight. The two of you are going to South America with me.”

“Aye, aye, Capsicle,” Tony responded lazily, the others simply nodding their assent like normal people.

-/-/-

From previous experience, Steve knew that the Quinjet was fairly comfortable compared to some of the conditions he had to sleep in during his service in the military. Neither he nor Sam seemed to have trouble sleeping during the flight, and Tony was enough of an insomniac that he get by with two hours of sleep and a few cups of coffee. When Steve occasionally woke up during the night, Tony was often messing with his armor or checking the autopilot on the Quinjet. Even with Tony not sleeping much, when he did, either Steve or Sam was awake to make sure they didn’t fly into the side of a mountain. Tony assured them they wouldn’t, but neither of them were too comfortable trusting technology to that degree.

They touched down the next morning in what looked to be a valley in a mountain range. From checking the maps, Steve knew they were in Chile, but where, exactly, in the country he was unsure of. They disembarked, only to be treated to a short twenty minute hike from the valley to the site that was no problem for Steve or Sam, but Tony complained loudly until Steve agreed to carry his Iron Man suit, still disguised as a suitcase, for him.

The research site was buzzing with Shield agents, scientists and soldiers alike, though it was relatively sparsely populated compared to headquarters, which Steve had spent a not insignificant amount of time in.

“Ah, Captain America!” A man holding an ice pack to a black eye greeted them from across the encampment, then started striding towards them with his white lab coat fanning out behind him. “Iron Man, Falcon! Good to see you three. Oh, should I be calling you by your actual names? I just wanted to use your aliases because, I mean, how often is it that you get to say ‘hi’ to superheros?”

Noting that Tony looked pleased with the attention, Steve smiled and shook the man’s hand. “Either is fine, though our aliases would be better for radio communication.”

“Nice shiner you got, there,” Tony commented, “That from our mysterious guard?”

The man smiled. “I’m Dr. Mackworth, by the way. And yes, unfortunately. He’s quite strong, most of the preliminary search team that went down came back with broken bones. I got off lucky. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to intent on killing. We had to send a few agents home, but no fatalities.”

“Do you think he’s enhanced?” Sam asked.

“Oh, almost certainly,” Dr. Mackworth replied. “He wore strange clothing, some kind of ancient Asian fusion, maybe Chinese. He had a sword, but I don’t recall him using it. He took a few bullets like they were nothing. Since our group was mostly non-combatants, we withdrew and reported to HQ, then were told to stand by. I think it’s a good idea, leaving it to you three, since you’re all much more experienced with handling meta-humans, if that’s what that man was.”

Steve nodded, refraining from cutting the doctor off while he was rambling. “You can leave it to us.”

Dr. Mackworth nodded, and seemingly losing interest in them, went to examine a few of the machines that had been set up at the cave’s entrance, simultaneously shoeing away agents that had gathered to gawk at the Avengers that had arrived.

“Strange man,” Tony remarked. “I like him. So, capsicle, how are we handling this? Go in guns blazing?”

Sam frowned, obviously disliking the idea, but looked to Steve for orders. The Captain wasn’t surprised that Sam would look to him for a plan, but the fact that Tony was, as well, pleased him.

Steve shook his head. “No. We’ll talk before we engage in combat. Stay on the defense, though, and if he attacks then we’ll try and take him into into custody. Sam, be careful down there. The Falcon suite isn’t meant for tight quarters like caves. Are we understood?”

“Yes, sir,” Sam responded, Tony giving a lazy salute to say the same.

“Alright, then,” Steve breathed. “Suit up and head out.”

\---to be continued


	2. Chapter 2

Kujaku was wrong, as it turned out.

It seemed that with the help of their equipment, the humans could, in fact, navigate the confusing complex of caves. Furthermore, Yasha guessed that they were looking for Ashura, as the boxes they carried had lead them straight to this area of the cave system.

Of course, Yasha had confronted them in the corridor outside of Ashura’s resting place, since he hadn’t wanted them anywhere near the sleeping god. The invaders only appeared to have two warriors with them, so Yasha had refrained from killing them, since earnestly attacking people so weak would’ve been disgraceful. The two fighters, however, had rather interesting and annoying ranged weapons that he would have to ask Kujaku about later.

He’d already dug the metal out of his wounds, then clean and bandaged them with the supplies from the bag that Kujaku had brought. The injuries, one in his shoulder and the other in his leg, were already half healed and posed no real threat, but Yasha was still vaguely concerned about the humans possibly bringing reinforcements.

No matter, he thought, leaning against the base of the metallic tree, I will protect him. Without fail, until he wakes. This is our promise.

The thought filled him with peace and determination, until the soft sound of footsteps and voices carried through the passages.

Yasha frowned. It had been just yesterday that the last invaders had come; it seemed early for more. Though, there was no relying on his sense of time, since he had spent centuries looking at nothing but cave walls.

Yasha stood, the Yama Sword in hand, and departed Ashura’s resting place.

-/-/-

The caves were dark, as was expected, and Tony, now equipped in the Iron Man armor, had to keep a light on ahead of them to keep the team from running into walls. Sam had forgone the flight apparatus of the Falcon, since it would be virtually useless in the small passages the cave system, but he had donned the protective armor. Steve himself just wore his standard uniform, with his vibranium shield strapped to his back.

Before they had entered the cave, Tony had spoken with several of the scientists in order to tune the Iron Man scanners into the energy signature that the team from the previous day had been following. He had relayed a warning that the cave system was complex and maze like, so to prevent them from getting lost, they should stick to the virtual map that the scientists had made up.

To everyone’s surprise, as they drew closer to the energy signature, what looked like the roots of a massive tree began to line the passages, winding in and out of the rock without heed of the earth it ran through. The most astonishing thing was metallic look to the roots, looking more like brass than wood, and it emitted a soft glow that made it possible to see with lights, though Tony still kept his in-suit flashlight on. It was clear that the roots weren’t natural and were most likely generated by whatever magical artifact they were looking for, so their increase in density was a good sign that the team was heading in the right direction.

“Do you think there are McDonalds in Chile?” Tony asked, apparently getting tired of tense silence. “I could really go for a cheeseburger right now.”

Sam snorted. “There are McDonalds everywhere. You probably should’ve had more than coffee for breakfast.”

“Are you questing coffee?” Tony looked scandalized.

“Guys, focus,” Steve cut in. “I’m sure the camp has rations. We can eat after we’ve done our job.”

“Sure, capsicle. Crappy energy bars are totally as good as fast food,” Tony grumbled, but he remained quiet after that.

They continued with only occasional comments that Steve permitted and even contributed to. The covering of roots lining the walls grew thicker to the point where Steve could barely see rock anymore, and it even began to cover the floor, slowing their progress and making maneuvering more difficult.

Finally, after what felt like hours of scrambling across uneven ground, Tony held out a hand to stop them. His scanners could pick up on life signatures before Sam or Steve could see them. “Well, guys, looks like we’ve found out mysterious guard.”

As if to confirm Tony’s words, a man stepped out from around the bend of the passage. He wore obviously old clothes, the cloth frayed and stained in a blood, and walked with a slight limp. Steve guessed those were from injuries that the Shield agents had inflicted. His hair was absurdly long, ad a jagged scar ran up one cheek and past his eye, which seemed to be permanently closed due to the old injury. He held an old, curved sword in one hand, but made no move to draw it, yet.

The man spoke first. “Name yourselves. Why have you come?”

“My name is Steve Rogers,” he answered. “My team and I are with Shield, the organization that’s trying to investigate whatever it is that’s emitting that energy signature.”

“Were they the ones who came before?” the man asked.

Steve nodded. “Yes.”

“And your companions?”

“My name is Sam Wilson,” Sam provided.

Tony waved, the mechanical sound accompanying the movement pronounced in the quiet cave. “Tony Stark. Iron Man. Genius, Billionaire, Philanthropist. And you are?”

The man gave Tony a perplexed look. “My name is Yasha. I don’t believe my titles are relevant anymore. Will you leave this place?”

Steve frowned. “I’m sorry, we have orders to gain access to these passages for our agents. We’re not here to fight you or steal from you.”

“We’re the good guys,” Tony added.

Yasha frowned, his grip on his blade noticeably tightening. “If what you’re looking for is beyond this passage, then I cannot let you or anyone else pass. I won’t let anyone hurt him.”

Sam frowned. “Him?”

“I promise we’re not here to hurt anyone,” Steve assured, raising his hands in a placating gesture. He decided to switch tactics and asked, “What is it that you’re guarding?”

“Or who, it looks like,” Tony mumbled over the communications channel, making it inaudible to Yasha.

“Why are you concerned with him?” Yasha asked.

“Our ‘mystical object’ is definately a person, then,” Tony remarked, still using their comm system. “I didn’t sign up to turn a person into a science project for Shield.”

“It’s our job,” Steve said, ignoring Tony’s comments for the moment. “We’re guardians of sorts, too. We exist to protect Earth and its people. As long as you’re not a threat to it, that includes you and your friend, as well.”

Sam nodded in agreement. “You don’t exactly seem human, and I’ll bet your friend isn’t either. Shield will want to keep tabs on you guys, but they probably won’t poke around if they’re sure you’re not harmful.”

“And if he is a threat?” Yasha asked, narrowing his eye at three of them.

“Then we’d do our best to take him into custody,” Steve replied. “But only if he does something against our laws. We won’t detain or hurt him just for what he is or what he’s capable of, if that’s what you’re worried about. We won’t do it to you, either.”

That seemed to relax Yasha, which in turn eased the tension in everyone else. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, but Steve was less worried about a fight breaking out. “That is… good to know.”

“Can we meet your friend?” Tony asked, projecting his voice through the suit’s speakers this time.

Yasha frowned at Tony, again. “You cannot.”

“Why not?” Sam questioned.

“He is asleep,” Yasha admitted reluctantly. “He cannot meet with anyone.”

“Can we take a look at him, then?” Tony asked. “We humans have lots of technology that might be able to tell us something useful. We might be able to help your friend, if it’s something that can be helped.”

Yasha’s eye lit up with what Steve guessed was hope. “Kujaku has said similar things about human ingenuity. Very well, I will let you pass. But I’m warning you, if I think you’re going to harm him, I will kill you.”

Sam glanced nervously at Steve, who only nodded. “We promise, we’ll be careful.”

Yasha nodded, then turned and started to walk in the directed he’d come from. After a few moments, Steve, Sam, and Tony followed him.

“Who’s Kojaka?” Tony asked.

“Kujaku,” Yasha corrected. “A friend of mine.”

“You have friends down here? Well, besides your sleeping friend,” Tony said, earning a gabb in the side from Sam. Though, it didn’t do much more than give Sam a sore elbow with Tony wearing the Iron Man armor.

Yasha, thankfully, didn’t seem offended by the remark, but neither did he respond to it. This left the team to follow him in silence. Of course, despite the fact that they weren’t as guarded now, they remained alert and ready to fight in case the man was leading them into some kind of trap.

After several minutes of walking, they entered a small natural chamber. The roots lining the caves fed into a leafless tree that was as metallic looking as its roots, and in the center of the tree, a person seemed to be engulfed in it. Nothing was visible of them below their shoulders, their head held upright by its place set within the tree, and long black hair similar to Yasha’s fanned out and disappearing into the tree with the rest of the person. Dissimilar to Yasha, this person had pointed ears, making them appear distinctly inhuman.

Yasha strode into the chamber ahead of them, sitting at the base of the tree and setting himself between the sleeping person and their team.

Tony whistled. “How’d he get like this?”

Yasha took a moment to reply. “He was injured… so he fell asleep.”

“And you’ve been guarding him since?” Steve asked, silently impressed.

Yasha nodded. “We promised to stay together.”

“You two lovers or something?” Tony asked, already starting to get the suit’s various scanners up and running.

“No,” Yasha answered simply.

“How long have you been here?” Sam asked. None of the team had yet to entered the chamber, worried they would do something to provoke Yasha.

The man frowned. “A few thousand years.”

Tony sputtered. “Really?! What the hell are you guys?!”

“True, I’ve lived longer than most of my kind,” Yasha replied, resting one hand on his sword. “I am of the Yasha warrior god clan.”

“Great, two more Thors,” Tony commented.

Yasha raised an eyebrow. “Who is Thor?”

“A teammate of ours,” Steve answered. “Is it alright if we come in?”

Yasha studied Steve for a moment, then nodded. Steve guessed that the man figured with their current positions, they wouldn’t be able to get to the sleeping person without first going through Yasha.

“Yo, capsicle,” Tony said over their comms. “I’m not getting any vituals from that guy. No heartbeat, breathing--nothing. Though, he is the source of that energy signature that Shield is so worried about. It might mean he’s dead, or maybe not. His body isn’t decaying at all, so who knows.”

Steve nodded, taking Tony’s words into account. “So you know any way of waking him up?”

Yasha shook his head. “If I did, I would have already done it. Can you do anything?”

“We’re not sure,” Steve responded honestly. “We’ll have to take our findings back to our organization and see if they know anything.”

Yasha watched him for a moment before nodding. “Very well then.”

“What’s your friend’s name, by the way?” Sam questioned.

“Ashura,” Yasha said simply.

Steve nodded. “Thank you for your cooperation. Is it alright if we come back?”

Yasha nodded. “I won’t attack you three as long as you don’t try to harm him.”

“That’s all we can ask,” Steve responded, motioning for the three of them to leave. They left the chamber, and Yasha made no move to follow them.

-/-/-

“I feel bad for the guy, honestly,” Tony stated, when they were nearing the exit of the cave. “All alone in a cave for who knows how long with your friend who’s probably dead? It’s a wonder he’s actually sane.”

Sam shook his head. “You’re telling me. I noticed the sleeping guy looked pretty young.”

“He’s probably only a little older than Peter,” Steve noted.

“He’d be a heartbreaker, though,” Tony commented. “The guy’s pretty enough to make models jealous. Trust me, I know models.”

Steve shook his head. “Tony, are you searching the internet for their names?”

“Yeah, yeah, the connection is terrible out here,” he grumbled. “Yasha kind of comes up in Hindi, Ashura is a holiday in Shi’a Islam, but other than that, nothing of note. I don’t think they’re quite like our Goldilocks and Reindeer Games.”

“It’d be nice to be more familiar with what we’re dealing with,” Sam commented.

Tony sighed. “Are we ever? This is nothing new. Besides, all the Norse myths about Thor and Loki were pretty off about the genuine articles, so even if we had info, it might not apply.”

Since they were nearing the mouth of the cave, Steve said, “Let’s worry about this later. We’ll need to report to Fury and see if we can get some experts to tell us who they are.”

“Thinking of asking that Strange guy?” Tony asked.

Sam crossed his arms. “It’s Dr. Strange. I’d rather not get some mystical curse thing on me because you pissed him off.”

“He’d be a good place to start,” Steve said. “At the very least, he can tell us whether or not helping Yasha to wake Ashura would be a good idea.”

“You’re think of helping them?” Tony repeated, surprised. The cave grew lighter as they drew closer to the surface, so he switched his built in flashlight off. “Of course you are. Honestly, Mr. Righteous wouldn’t not help them without a good reason.”

Sam smiled at the two of them. “Well, you have to admit, Yasha waiting for Ashura to wake up for so long is sad.”

“Well, as long as nothing dangerous happens, sounds good to me,” Tony replied. “And hey? Getting on the good side of powerful non-humans is never a bad thing. The more the merrier.”

“Ultimately, Fury still has the final say,” Sam observed, squinting as they left the cave and were bombarded with the light of day.

“Not necessarily,” Tony said. “The Avengers don’t technically answer to Shield, even if we’re closely connected. We could help without eyepatch’s permission. You know how paranoid he can be.”

“For a good reason,” eyepatch himself said over their comms. “Get your asses up here and report already.”

“Yes, sir,” Steve responded automatically, quickening his pace just a little bit. Sam followed suit, while Tony leisurely lagged behind.

It was going to be an interesting report.

-/-/-

“Heyo!”

Yasha broke his staring contest with the rock to look up and spot Kujaku, who’d somehow managed to sneak into the chamber without alerting either the former king or the humans buzzing around outside. This, of course, didn’t surprise Yasha. Kujaku was always good at getting into places he shouldn’t be.

“So, you had visitors?” Kujaku observed.

Yasha nodded. “This is early for a visit.”

“Well,” Kujaku said, “You having found other people to talk to made me feel lonely.”

Yasha shook his head. Most likely, Kujaku had decided to visit ahead of schedule to check on the situation with the humans. “Do you know them?”

“It’d be hard not to,” the Stargazer laughed. “They’re pretty famous in the human world. You met three of the Avengers, self proclaimed defenders of Earth.”

Yasha frowned, taking note of Kujaku’s words. “Can we trust them?”

“I believe so… But not with Ashura’s ‘true nature,’” Kujaku stated. “The ‘true’ Ashura is a God of Destruction, leader of the Blood Clan, and the remorseless destroyer of evil who sees pretty much everything as evil. If they knew that, they may decide that it’s better to kill Ashura.”

Yasha’s grip tightened on the Yama Sword, and he was about ready to march outside and fight them that moments. But, Kujaku made a waving gesture with his hands in an attempt to keep his attention.

“You have to remember, they don’t know our sweet little piggy like we do,” Kujaku explained, glancing towards Ashura’s exposed face with a soft expression. “If Ashura does wake, then we’ll take care of his ‘true nature.’ They won’t even have to know.”

Yasha watched Kujaku carefully, but was unable to identify the new emotion that had crept onto the Stargazer’s face. Still, he was almost overwhelming by a soaring feeling with the idea of Ashura’s return being brought up. “What are you planning?”

“With their help,” Kujaku said airly, “A miracle just might happen.”

\---to be continued


	3. Chapter 3

“Yoo-hoo!”

Steve, Sam, and Tony all jumped and whirled away the computer screen, where a very annoyed Nick Fury was trying to see past the three and understand what had them all pulling out their respective weapons. Except for Tony, who had ditched his armor as soon as they left the cave and was now holding a random metal pole that had been left lying around. (It was probably left over from the construction of the camp.) Sam, missing his wings, was sporting a handgun instead.

The intruder was odd, to say the least. He had dark hair that had an almost purple sheen to it, and was fairly casually dressed in jeans, a hoodie, and tennis shoes. His outfit, coupled with his cheerily and relaxed smile, made him almost look like some lost teenager. The archaic staff he carried in one hand told a different story, though.

“Can I take five to go get my repulsors?” Tony asked, breaking the tension. “I swear, I’m a lot more intimidating with them.”

“I don’t think you’ll be needing them,” the stranger said. “I’m not here to fight you. My name is Kujaku, and I’m a friend of Ashura’s.”

“Not Yasha’s?” Sam questioned.

Kujaku shrugged. “I guess I am, if you squint. Anyway, I hear you three want to wake Ashura up?”

“No one is waking up anyone, yet,” Fury said sharply, the effectiveness of his commanding aura somewhat diminished by the poor Skype connection. “Damn it, you three move.”

Steve and Sam stepped to either side, making it possible for Fury to see their unexpected guest. It looked like he was about to go off on a rant, but Kujaku beat him to it.

“I like the eyepatch!” he commented. “It makes you look like a badass. Maybe I should get one for Lord Yasha.”

Fury, used to this kind of behavior thanks to years of experience dealing with Tony, ignored his remarks. “How in the hell did you get past my people?”

Kujaku just smiled. “Magic, my friend, is a very handy tool.”

“You’re like Dr. Strange?” Tony interjected, earning a glare from Fury.

“I’m not sure who that is,” Kujaku answered, “But it’s unlikely that I am.”

Fury sighed in annoyance. “Before you so rudely interrupted us, my team was updating me on their encounter with the ones who are calling themselves Yasha and Ashura. Now-”

“Technically, they only really encountered Yasha,” Kujaku said, grinning. Steve had the feeling that Tony and this man would be good friends, since they both had a habit of poking at things they shouldn’t.

“As I was saying,” Fury stated forcefully, “They updated me on the basic situation, but would you care to enlighten us on exactly what and who you three are?”

“Well, as Yasha said, we belong to a race of gods that existed a while ago,” Kujaku explained. “However, our world suffered a great disaster following the rise of the God King Taishakuten. He exterminated every clan that opposed him, and then our little sleeping Ashura, together with Yasha, attempted to gather the six stars from a prophecy in order to defeat him, but that final battle was a bit… catastrophic. Poor little Ashura didn’t exactly succeed in saving the heavens from Taishakuten. Either way, after all that death and destruction, our race fell into decline. Without the warrior clans to protect the borders from demons, more and more gods and people died. So, our world faded and eventually merged with yours, since the magic supporting the heavens came from the gods as a whole, with so few to maintain the land, it just sort of… poof! Gone. Absorbed into the world of man. The demons faded with the land, and the humans and gods that were left just sort of migrated here. Either way, there are very few of us around, now. You shouldn’t need to worry about it.”

“Why does that not make me feel better?” Fury asked no one in particular. “Is it just you three, or are there more?”

“No, just us,” Kujaku said.

“What about this God King you mentioned?” Fury pushed.

“He’s dead,” Kujaku answered. “And there hasn’t been one since Tenkai, our land, fell. It’s ancient history, so again, you don’t need to worry about it.”

Fury nodded, seemingly satisfied with that. If Steve knew Fury, though, the man was unlikely to take any of Kujaku’s information at face value. “I take it you’re not giving of this information for free?”

“Of course not,” Kujaku replied happily. “I expect your help in waking Ashura, like you’ve already lead Lord Yasha to believe. It really would be cruel to him to back out when you’ve gotten his hopes so high, wouldn’t it?”

“Do you have a method in mind?” Steve asked, finally breaking into the conversation.

Kujaku grinned. “I’m glad you asked. I need you to procure a strong seal, of the magic variety.”

“So this means we’re going to be phoning Dr. Strange, after all,” Tony observed.

Kujaku laughed. “Well, I was thinking of a certain shop in Japan that you might be able to use, but if you have a way to obtain it otherwise, then use that method. That place won’t even appear to those who don’t need it. It’s very finicky magic, honestly.”

“Care to elaborate on that?” Fury asked.

“Not particularly.”

“Oh, come on,” Tony complained. “A shop with magic shit? That sounds cool.”

Kujaku shrugged. “Again, you won’t find it if you don’t need it, and it’s not exactly a good thing to need it. I would just forget about it, if I were you.”

“Fine,” Fury sighed. “If we do this, we expect your full cooperation with Shield.”

“So like partners or something?” Kujaku asked.

Fury shook his head. “Just stay in our compound for observation for a time and spend some time with our scientists. We won’t force anything beyond that, granted you three behave.”

Kujaku blinked and pointed to himself. “Me, too?”

“Yes,” Fury responded simply.

Kujaku shrugged. “I can’t say anything without Lord Yasha’s agreement. Ashura is normally the one to make decisions about who we ally with, but I suppose he’d abide by whatever Yasha decides.”

“Then go ask,” Fury ordered.

“Fine, fine,” the man sighed, then started to head toward the entrance of the cave.

“Call up Dr. Strange,” Fury grumbled, once Kujaku was out of earshot. “See if he knows whether or not this is a good idea, and if it is, get a seal or whatever from him. I take it you three can handle that?”

“You sure you don’t wanna do it yourself?” Tony wondered.

“I am a busy man,” Fury replied. “I expect this to be taken care of.” As soon as he finished speaking, the screen went dark.

Tony laughed lightly. “He’s still got a stick up his ass.”

“Let’s go ahead and contact Dr. Strange,” Steve suggested. He wasn’t sure when Kujaku would be back, and it was probably better to confirm whether these ‘gods’ could be trusted without his presence.

Sam nodded, and Tony went about setting up the conference call on the computer. “I swear, I need to upgrade Shield’s portable network,” he complained.

After several minutes, the conference call was patched through, and it took another several minutes for the doctor himself to actually appear on screen. “Do you guys realize what time it is over here?”

“Right, time difference,” Steve remembered. “Sorry about that.”

Dr. Strange just shook his head. “Well, I take it this is important, so it’s fine.”

Sam nodded. “Yeah, you know a guy called Ashura? Or Yasha, or Kujaku?”

“Who are they?” Strange asked, frowning.

“Gods, apparently,” Tony piped in. “But more like Thor and Loki gods than actual gods. Aliens or non-humans with supernatural powers. They’re supposedly pretty old and magicy, so we thought you might know something.”

“Well,” Strange started, “The names sound vaguely familiar, maybe mentioned in a few old legends. Nothing terribly important or useful, I think.”

Steve sighed, lamenting their lack of information. “Thank you, Doctor.”

“While we’ve got you on the line,” Tony said, “Do you happen to have any spare powerful seals lying around?”

Strange raised an eyebrow at him. “Why on Earth would you need a seal?”

“Kujaku, one of the ones we mentioned earlier, said that he needed it in order wake Ashura up,” Steve explained.

“You know, we’ve yet to actually explain shit,” Tony astutely observed.

“Explained shit would be nice.”

“Oh, right.” Steve proceed to fill Strange in on everything they knew. The doctor seemed to take everything in stride, nodding at a few of the parts. Tony chimed in with his own commentary every now and then, while Sam was respectfully silent.

“Well,” he started, once Steve had finished talking, “I can do a divination, of sorts, but fortune telling really isn’t my thing. I won’t be able to tell you much, but if you’re about to do something world endingly bad, I should be able to understand at least that much. As for the seal, I’ll need more information on what it will be used for before I’ll be able to come up with something. Generally speaking though, seals are only used when something is powerful and either dangerous or can’t be controlled. The fact that it’s a necessity for Ashura’s awakening isn’t all that promising.”

“That’s not good,” Tony remarked. “So, we should probably back out of this, then?”

“Hm… possibly. Though, the fact that they want a seal at all is a good sign that they’re not trying to unleash some kind of uncontrollable power into the world. They’re intentionally putting the brakes on whoever you’re trying to wake up’s power,” Strange explained.

Steve nodded in understanding. “At least for now, we’ll proceed and have Kujaku give you the details, when he returns.”

Strange nodded, then yawned. “Well, phone me again when you can, but please, unless it’s a dire emergency, wait for morning.”

“Will do, Doctor,” Sam agreed.

With that, Dr. Strange clicked off and the screen, once again, went dark.

-/-/-

“Alright, so,” Kujaku started, once again seated across from Yasha and Ashura. “We’ve got a choice. They said they’d get me a seal, which means that I can actually wake little piggy up, but the trade off is that the three of us have to cooperate with their organization.”

Yasha frowned. “All you needed to wake Ashura was a seal?” Leave it to single minded Yasha to ask about that.

“Unfortunately, yes,” he answered. “I looked, but I don’t have access to any seals strong enough to contain Ashura’s ‘true nature’ without pissing off some very powerful people. There’s no point in waking him up if it’s not really him I wake up.”

Yasha looked like he wanted to protest, but then the former king seemed to think better of it. He waited for Kujaku to continue, and the stargazer obliged.

“Humans are surprisingly advanced in magic currently, so I think they’ll be able to procure a seal where I couldn’t,” Kujaku stated confidently. “That means that I just need to prepare for the ceremony.”

“This is something that only stargazers can do?” Yasha guessed.

Kujaku nodded. “That’s right. So, now, here’s the choice: to trust or not to trust?”

“Earlier, you said we could trust them.”

“Is that your answer?” Kujaku asked, grinning.

Yasha nodded derisively.

“Well, I’ll go tell them, then.”

-/-/-

“You guys miss me?”

Once again, Sam and Steve whirled on Kujaku, while Tony only smirked.

“I knew you were coming,” the inventor said smugly. “I tuned the scanners to you guys--you can’t sneak up on me with your hocus pocus shit.”

“Tony,” Steve admonished.

Said man waved him off. “Fine, fine. I’ll play nice. Whatever.”

Kujaku just laughed. “You guys are an amusing bunch. Anyway, Yasha agreed to trust you guys. We’ll be in your care for the foreseeable future!”

“That’s good to hear,” Steve responded. “We’ll try to live up to that trust.”

Kujaku just watched him with an emotion that Steve couldn’t exactly pin, but amusement was definitely the prevailing mood. “So, do you have the means to procure the seal?”

“Yes, but I don’t know how long it will take,” Steve replied. “We need a few more details for our friend.”

Kujaku nodded. “Details are easy. I can write out the specifications. Your friend should be able to understand them, if he’s any good.”

“He’s supposed to be the best in his field,” Steve assured.

“Either way, I’m glad you didn’t say you could do it immediately,” Kujaku admitted, “Because the procedure should really be done on a moonless night, if we want it to succeed.”

Sam raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“That’s when the heavens are the least watchful,” Kujaku responded, grinning impishly.

“Um,” Tony responded intelligently. Steve felt the same, and he guessed Sam did, as well.

“Actually, I’m kidding,” Kujaku assured. “That’s just how long it’ll take me to fly to New York and back. I have something I need to take care of before we get started.”

“Why the hell is it always New York?” Tony grumbled.

Steve shrugged. “It is the big apple.”

Something seemed to occur to Tony. “So you said fly?”

“Yes,” Kujaku answered, nodding. “That’s how I get most places.”

“So, like, a plane? Or something a bit more magic?” Sam interjected with a question of his own.

“Bit more magic,” Kujaku answered. “Anyway, I’m going to get started on those details. You three try not to miss me too much.”

With that, the strange man flitted off to pilfer pen and paper from one of the scientists. Steve glanced at what Kujaku was writing as he passed once, but it was completely incomprehensible to him. Hopefully Dr. Strange was actually able to read it.

Tony went back to annoying the other scientists and messing with the settings on their equipment. Thankfully, he managed not to break anything, and actually improved a few of the machines. Nothing was as useful as a bored Tony.

Meanwhile, Sam and Steve spoke for about ten minutes, before Kujaku handed them the paper filled with things they could only dream of understanding, then disappeared into the woods. Tony attempted to follow him into the woods, but came out of the underbrush frowning at his scanner half a minute later.

“Guy wasn’t kidding about flying,” Tony remarked, messing with a StarkPad he’d brought with him. “He just took off at around 70 miles per hour. He was out of range in no time flat. Don’t know if he was actually airborne, but he certainly knows how to travel.”

“Do you think it’s alright to just let him leave?” Sam asked. “They’re supposed to be under our supervision now, aren’t they?”

Steve shook his head. “They aren’t our prisoners, and they’ve done nothing to make us think they should be watched constantly. If Kujaku needs to do something, then we should let him.”

“Hey, guys,” Tony interjected, looking up from his tablet. “The new moon is two days from today.”

“Great,” Sam groaned.

“Well, we should get this to Dr. Strange,” Steve said, still holding Kujaku’s paper in his hands. He remembered their earlier conversation with the doctor, then added, “In a few hours or so.”

Tony sighed and set the tablet down on the table. “Alright guys, looks like we’ve got some time to kill. Anyone bring cards?”

This was going to be a long couple of days.

\---to be continued


	4. Chapter 4

As usual, the apartment was neat, tidy, and almost criminally decorated. Kujaku would have to give Tenou another lecture about color theory and what clashing colors meant. At the very least, the window was clean enough that crawling through it didn’t mess up his clothes.

Kujaku sighed and glanced at the digital clock in the room as he quietly shut the window behind him. It was ridiculously late, so much so that the stargazer almost felt bad. Though, to be fair, the visit was quite necessary and time was of the essence. He only had about a day and a half to get back to South America and prepare the ceremony, which he most definitely did not want to rush.

“Hey, Lord Tenou… Hello,” Kujaku called out, creeping silently through the apartment. He set his backpack (hey, carrying stuff and flying was annoying) against the wall near the window as he surveyed the currently empty and dark apartment. Then, he paused. Maybe he should raid the man’s cupboards and see if there were any pots and pans to bang on. After all, he was trying to get the former prince’s attention.

“Kujaku?”

A door situated towards the back of the apartment opened, revealing a half-asleep Tenou. His hair, now short, was messy with sleep and he was actually wearing a full set of pajamas.

“Hello, dear prince,” Kujaku sang. “I apologize for the rudeness of my visit.”

Tenou shook his head. “It’s been… decades. If you’re visiting now, at this time of night, it must important. It has something to do with my brother, correct?”

“Right on the money. Have you heard of the Avengers?”

“Of course,” Tenou said, blinking. “What do they have to do with anything?”

Kujaku chuckled and relayed a shortened version of everything that had happened. Tenou listened, frowning, and half-way through the explanation started rummaging through the kitchen to make tea.

Now, they were in the living room with two cups of the warm liquid between them.

“So that’s how it is…” Tenou sighed into his mug. “At least we know they’re good people, but this is a bit worrisome. I would be far too sad for my brother to be deprived of his only second chance.”

Kujaku chuckled. “Ah, I wouldn’t worry about them doing anything to Ashura. Yasha’s there. He’s weaker than he was, but his will to protect Ashura is kind of scary. He’d tear them to shreds if they tried anything, or at the very least die trying. As long as he’s around, Ashura is relatively safe.”

“I know.” Tenou smiled kindly. “I’m glad my brother found such a man to stay at his side.”

“Yeah, those two are something.”

“So, you’ve come to retrieve the items you left with me?” Tenou asked, hitting home on what Kujaku was actually there for.

Kujaku set his mug down then stretched. “Yeah, unfortunately, I have to prepare the ceremony to wake the little piggy up on short notice. I have the Avengers tracking down the seal, which I’ll entrust to Lord Yasha, but I’ll need to ritual items I left with you.”

Tenou nodded. “Please wait one moment.”

With that, the former prince of gods left the living room, once again disappearing in the back bedroom. He was gone for several minutes, leaving Kujaku to stare boredly at the ceiling. When he emerged, the stargazer looked up and barely managed to conceal his surprise at what Tenou was carrying.

“Um, Princy, are you going senile? That’s not what I left with you,” he observed.

Tenou smiled and set his burden down on the coffee table in front of Kujaku, then held up a set of keys in front of the stargazer’s face. “No, it’s not. I put your things in a rather expensive storage unit. The security there is better than here, so I thought it would be a better place to keep… Well, there are not exactly things you would find in an average household, and I would find it difficult to explain why a lawyer possesses such items to my visitors if they happened to find any of it. This…” He gestured toward the object he’d procured, which was a rather ornate jar. “This is my contribution to my brother’s awakening.”

Kujaku frowned at the jar. “I have everything I need… Is that preservation magic? What is this?”

“My father’s heart,” Tenou said simply.

“Um… you’ve had that this entire time?” Kujaku was mildly grossed out. Wow, the modern era had really softened him to this kind of thing.

“Yes. Before he died, my father told me of what would be required to wake Ashura… I suppose as remains of his affection for Ashura-ou? Or perhaps for a different reason,” Tenou sighed. “Even to this day, I do not understand my father. Regardless, waking Ashura requires the sacrifice of a god. Yasha and I no longer have the magic within us required to play this part, but… Kujaku, you’ve preserved your magic, and I bet it was for this very purpose. You’ve intended to sacrifice yourself.”

Kujaku said nothing, but that was enough of an answer. Tenou smiled sadly at him.

“Do not be mistaken. I think that’s admirable of you to love Ashura so,” Tenou continued. “But I think he will be very sad if you were to die for him. That’s why I’ve held onto this… The spells on the jar have preserved enough of my father’s essence that it should suffice as the sacrifice. Kujaku, you do not have to die for this.”

Kujaku’s entire body was tense, looking coiled and ready to crack. He nails dug into the back of his hand, and he dogged kept his gaze fixed on the carpet beneath him. “I should be happy… It’s been a long time. I don’t think any of us were meant to live this long.”

“We will be asking Ashura to live, despite the difficulties,” Tenou said, cutting to the core of the matter. “I think it is unfair of us to not ask the same of ourselves.”

Kujaku laughed, abruptly forcing himself to relax his posture. The feeling burrowing in his stomach refused to go away, but lying to Tenou made him feel better regardless. “You really don’t mince your words, do you, Mr. Prince?”

“I’m glad you understand,” Tenou replied, grinning lightly. He’d taken Kujaku at face value. “I trust that you’ll accept my offering, then?”

The stargazer stared at the jar in front of him for a moment before nodding. “Yes, I think I will. I didn’t think I’d get to see the little scamp again… I’m happy about.” If nothing else, that was true. “Might as well just take it.” It wasn’t as if Kaishankuten would do or had done anything better with his life, not that he would say that aloud in front of his son, even if Tenou was already painfully aware of the nature of his late father’s character.

“Thank you,” Tenou responded, earnest enough to make Kujaku feel almost uncomfortable.

Kujaku nodded, leaving the sofa to retrieve his backpack. Tenou moved simultaneously, wrapping the sealed jar in a cloth so that it was ready to be deposited in Kujaku’s bag when he walked back into the living room.

“Will you have enough space? You left of stuff with me,” Tenou asked as Kujaku situated the bag onto his back. He grabbed the keys still on the coffee table and tucked them into the pocket of his jeans.

“I actually only need a few of them,” Kujaku explained. “Some incense and herbs imbued with magic, to facilitate the rest of the magic I’ll be doing.”

Tenou nodded. “That’s good. Take care.”

“Sure.”

Certainly not one for sappy goodbyes, Kujaku was out the window and into the sky before Tenou could say anything else.

-/-/-

Cards got boring after a dozen or so games.

This wasn’t helped by the fact that Sam, Steve, and Tony only knew about five card games between them, but Tony was a sore loser and Sam was weirdly good, which made them a headache to play with. Tony quit in a childish fit of rage and left to go make all the camp’s toasters sentient, Steve guessed, leaving the two of them to play cards with a few of the agents from camp.

As Steve learned, most of them were either scientists or newer recruits.

“The energy signature we got was fairly weak, initially,” Dr. Mackworth had explained. “It wasn’t a priority. Even now, the readings are pretty stable, and Shield is spread kind of thin. The best people--besides you guys, of course--are busy doing other things. So yeah, sorry, we’re all you’ve got and are probably going to get.”

In response to that, Sam set down a card and shrugged. “It doesn’t look like there’s going to be any fighting, so that’s fine.”

They played for another half hour or so before dispersing to do other things. Steve checked in on Tony, who looked like he’d dissected the camp’s coffee machine, so the Captain assumed he was fine.

The tranquility of the camp was abruptly interrupted when a blazing sphere suddenly opened up in some empty space of the camp, and not a moment later Dr. Strange stepped through. Tony was startled enough to drop the coffee maker he was tinkering with.

“Holy shit, warn a guy before you do that,” Tony griped, bending down to retrieve his project.

Steve and Sam both approached the Sorcerer Supreme, but it was Steve who spoke, “Doctor. Thank you for coming.”

“Hello, Captain.” Dr. Strange nodded then pulled a parcel from the folds of his… robe thing? Steve accepted it deftly. “I wanted to check this out in person before you lot did anything.”

“Well? Anything we should be concerned about?” Sam asked.

The doctor sighed and shook his head. “The presence I’m feeling is probably Ashura, from what you’ve told me. He’s powerful, but I certainly don’t sense any ill-intent from him. That seal is meant for him, so once you wake him up and place that on him, he shouldn’t be a threat.”

“Good to hear we’re not about to wake up some Godzilla type thing,” Tony remarked.

“It seems you have another guest to worry about,” Dr. Strange observed, pointedly ignoring Tony.

Kujaku strolled up to them, again having managed to bypass the camp’s security, and looked for all the world like some out-of-place teenager when he gave a nonchalant wave. “Hello, everyone! Miss me?”

“Welcome back,” Steve politely greeted, before Tony could get annoyed enough to pull something to make himself the center of attention. “Did you get everything you needed?”

“Sure did. You guys got the seal?”

Dr. Strange held out the rolled parchment, and Kujaku accepted in with an almost reverent delicacy to his touch. Carefully, he unfurled it and inspected its contents for a moment.

“I trust it’ll be satisfactory,” Dr. Strange asserted.

Kujaku nodded. “Yeah, no, definitely. This is actually stronger than what I asked for, but stronger is better, so this is great. Thanks for the help.”

“It was a favor to the Avengers.”

“And we appreciate it, too,” Steve interjected.

“So, should we go ahead and get this started?” Tony asked.

Steve sighed. “We might as well. Tony, Sam, I want you two up here in case anything happens. Kujaku, Dr. Strange, the three of us will go down.”

“You’re assuming I’m coming,” Dr. Strange stated.

“You haven’t left yet, which means I’m guessing you want to stick around and make sure this doesn’t go horribly wrong,” Steve replied, giving the Doctor a reassuring smile. “I’d appreciate having someone I trust who’s familiar with magic, too.”

Dr. Strange sighed and waved dismissively. “Fine, fine, I’m coming.”

“And we’re benched,” Tony complained.

“Not benched,” Sam corrected, “We’re backup.”

“That’s almost worst.”

Before they could start arguing, as they often did, Steve said, “I’m counting on you both.”

Kujaku unslung the bookbag from his shoulders and set it against one of the tables Shield had set up. He knelt, fiddled with the bag’s zipper for a moment, and then pulled what looked to be a jar from it. The also grabbed a small, old-fashioned pouch made of cloth and stuck it in one of the pockets of his jeans.

He looked to everyone and said, “Well, everyone ready?”

“Yes, let’s go,” Steve responded, and he, Kujaku, and Dr. Strange made their way down into the caverns where Ashura slept.

-/-/-

The “ceremony,” as it turned out, wasn’t as extravagant as Steve might have imagined. Kujaku actually put the Sorcerer Supreme to work, having him help him draw a complex array on the ground in chalk. Steve and Yasha were relegated to clearing the area of the excess roots that had accumulated.

Everyone buzzed with nervous energy. Kujaku and Yasha, likely because they were finally going to be reunited with their friend, while Steve and Strange were more uncertain of the outcome of this endeavor.

When the circle was completed, Kujaku toll the seal and approached Ashura’s still form, still encased in the tree-like formation. Steve glanced to Yasha, who he expected to be on guard with someone coming so close to his charge, but the man only watched Kujaku’s movements intently. So Yasha must trust Kujaku with Ashura, at the very least.

Kujaku unrolled the parchment again, his fingers tracing the ink on its surface. As he did, the ink sparked to life and started glowing. Kujaku released it and stepped back, the parchment burning in the air to leave only the marks floating in empty air. They sunk back, stopped at Ashura’s collar and embedding themselves into their skin. The glow faded, leaving what looked to be an inky black tattoo just under the sleeping god’s throat.

“The seal’s taken care of now,” Kujaku stated, admiring his handiwork. “So now we just need to handle the waking him up part.”

“I’m assuming that’s what the jar’s for?” Strange asked.

Kujaku nodded. “The heart of a god is needed to break Ashura of his slumber.”

“You have a heart in there,” Steve repeated, trying to wrap his head around it. “You didn’t kill anyone to get that, did you?”

“No, don’t worry. The doner was long dead, and this was a gift from his next of kin,” Kujaku explained.

“Who’s was it?” Yasha asked, speaking for the first time that day.

Kujaku glanced to him, then fixed his gaze back on Ashura. “Kaishankuten.”

“The evil king you guys mentioned?” Steve asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“The exact one.”

Strange sighed, inserting himself back into the conversation. “We should proceed. I don’t want to be here all day. I still have a sanctum to protect back home.”

“You’re alright with this?” Steve shot Dr. Strange a worried look.

“Once a person is dead, they don’t have much use for the body they leave behind,” Strange explained. “In medicine, we use organs of the deceased to do good all the time. Although this is a little more of a grey area, if the family isn’t bothered, then I don’t see why it’s our place to object.”

“Point taken.” Steve himself was an organ donor, after all, though he doubted the government would actually let anyone receive his organs because of the serum. He nodded to Kujaku. “Please, go ahead.”

“Man, you guys are really indecisive,” Kujaku complained, though he was already pulling a rather ornate looking staff from its hiding place in one of the room’s nooks. He then proceeded to throw it at Yasha and say, “Hold that for a sec, please!”

Yasha grabbed it from the air and blinked for a moment. Then, he scowled, but he held onto the staff anyway. It was the most animated that Steve had ever seen him.

Kujaku dumped the contents from the pouch he’d pocketed earlier in five different locations around the circle, each marked with a much smaller circle embedded into the design.

“This is a rather elaborate setup,” Dr. Strange commented.

“Thanks, peanut gallery,” Kujaku snarked. “I’m doing magic that was invented eons before you were born, so yeah, I’d like to get it right and not accidentally summon Satan.”

Dr. Strange crossed his arms. “Most magic worth anything was invented eons before I was born, and summoning Satan is impossible.”

They just implied that Satan actually existed. Steve was feeling a migraine coming on.

“It’s a joke,” Kujaku sighed, then held his hand out to Yasha to ask for his staff back. “He takes a joke almost as bad as you do.”

Yasha gave Kujaku the most subtle eye roll that Steve had ever seen but still handed him his staff back.

Kujaku grinned. “Thank you, Lord Yasha.”

With everyone’s attention now fixed on him, Kujaku entered the circle and placed the jar in the direct center. He stood only a foot behind it, then raised his staff and started a low chant too quiet to make out, even with Steve’s enhanced hearing.

A light air current picked up in the room, circling Kujaku and picking up the centuries of dust and dirt that had accumulated. The circle itself glowed faintly.

Breaking the enchanted atmosphere on the room, Kujaku suddenly slammed his staff on the jar, shattering the earthenware and releasing a black goop into the circle. It hung in the air for a moment before circling Kujaku’s staff along with the air. Slowly, it lightened in color until it was pure white and dispersed, which served to make the circle glow intensely for a moment.

Then, abruptly, the light faded entirely.

Kujaku set his staff on the ground and stepped forward, avoiding the shattered remains of the jar. He now stood directly in front of Ahura, whose eyes were blearily fluttering open.

Kujaku held out a hand, and like some spell had been broken, the roots encasing Ashura’s form shrunk away, causing the god’s form to start to fall.

Steve was about to jump forward, even if there was a part of him that knew he couldn’t make it in time, but the air around Ashura shifted, and their descent halted for long enough for them to reach out and take Kujaku’s extended hand.

Still half asleep, it seemed, Ashura let Kujaku guide them to the ground without a word.

Yasha was the first to spring forward, taking off his outer layer of clothing the drape it around Ashura’s shoulders. The god glanced back to him, then to Kujaku.

“You’re both… still alive…” The god’s voice was cracked and hoarse from disuse, the pitch making Steve rethink his estimate of Ashura’s actual age. Huddled on the ground, looking for all the world like a lost child, the god no longer looked imposing.

As if hearing Steve’s thoughts, Ashura broke out into hysterical tears.

\---to be continued

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I fudged the details on waking Ashura up. Shhh. Don’t tell anyone.
> 
> This got its first comment today, so I felt obligated to finish the chapter that had been sitting on my hard drive for six months XD I had not realized that anyone was reading this


End file.
